Belt buckle



Oct. 1, 1929. T. J. LOWERY BELT BUCKLE Filed Aplgil 8, 1926 Theodore JQZIawrzy.

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ATT'ORNE'Y iii Patented Oct. 1, 1929 UNITED STATES THEODORE J'. LOWERY, OF WASHINGTON, DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA BELT BUCKLE Application filed April 8, 1926. Serial No. 100,692.

My invention is an improvement in buckles and relates more especially to that particular type used in connection with a belt for supporting trousers from the waist of the wearer.

The primary object of my invention is to provide a buckle of this character with means adapted to engage a button on the waistband of the trousers for intimate connection of the buckle with said waistband so that it will more effectually cooperate with the belt and usual belt-loops in supporting the trousers by preventing the front or waist-band thereof from slipping down in the rear of the buckle.

A further object of my invention is to provide a button engaging means which may be readily applied to the conventional type of buckles as an attachment thereto, in either instance providing an arrangement by which the hingedplate forming the means of connecting the button to the buckle may be readily manipulated.

With these principal objects in View my invention consists in providing a belt-buckle with a hinged plate having a slot opening out at its upper end to receive the shank of the button or threads by which it is sewed to the waist-band so as to confine the button within the buckle for intimate connection therewith; all as hereinafter fully described and more particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings:

Figure 1 is a view illustrating the application of my invention.

Fig. 2 is an inverted planview of a conventional type of belt-buckle to which my 1111 611 tion may be applied.

Fig. 3 is a similar view showing my nvention applied.

Fig. A is a detail perspective viewof the plate forming the button engaglng means of the buckle.

Fig. 5 is a rear view of a belt buckleembodying my invention, the meeting ends of the waist-band of the trousers and buttonconnecting the same being indicated in dotted lines.

Fig. 6 is a sectional v1ew on the line 66 of Fig. 5.

Fig. 7 is a sectional view on the line 77 of Fig. 3. V

Fig. 8 is an inverted plan view of a beltbuckle illustrating a modification of my invention.

Fig. 9 is a sectional view on the line 9-9 of Fig. 8.

In the drawings I have shown my invention applied to a conventional type of beltbuckle A comprising a face-plate 10 having side pieces 11 struck inwardly. from the opposite longitudinal edges thereof with the usual extensions 11 ator near the rear end of the face-plate for guiding the loose end Z2 ofthe belt B into the buckle, the front end of the face-plate being provided with loop 12 and cam 13 cooperating in the usual manner for attaching one end of the belt to'the buckle by loop 12 and adjustably connecting the'oth'er end thereto by cam 13, the latter clamping the loose-end of the belt against the faceplate,- in the well known manner. The member forming the combined belt attaching loop. 12 and engaging cam 13 is pivotallyconnected to the side pieces 11 of the face-plate by gudgeons 1 1 14 at the ends of said member enga ing in sockets 11 punched in said side pieces, this being theusnal construction employed in buckles of the type herein shown although it will be obvious from the following description that my invention is applicable to other types of belt-buckles.

In carryingout my invention 1 provide a plate 15 which is hinged to the buckle frame so to lie normally between the outer edges of the side pieces 11 in the rearof the combined belt loop and cam and preferably hinged to the gudgeons 1 1 by ears 16 bent from said plate and located at the inner side of the side pieces 11, the ears being pierced to receive the gudgeons and the plate provided with an open-end slot to receive the shank of the button. For the purposeof limiting the inward movement of the plate to position it on a plane with the inner edges 95 of the side pieces of the buckle-frame the ears 16 are extended to provide feet 17 engaging the inner side of the face-plate, as shown in Fig. 7, and these feet may be turned slightly outward to impinge against said side 100 pieces to hold the plate in place by frictional contact. The plate 15 is preferably of the configuration shown in the drawings with the outer or free end thereofbeyond slot 18-curved abruptly so that the upper end of this portion of the plate will be below the body portion at the opposite side of the slot to facilitate engagement of the button; that is to say the shank of the button (formed by the threads by which it is sewed to the garment) will travel over the curved end por tion 15 and strike against the extended inner edge 15 of the slot to be guided thereby into said slot. Furthermore, I prefer to have the edges of the slot slightly depressed to obviate sharp edges which may cut the threads forming the shank of the button, and also have the inner end of the slot slightly enlarged, but it will be understood, of course, that these features are not essential, and that enlargement of the slot is not so necessary in the present instance inasmuch as the button is retained in connection with the plate by being enclosed within the buckle-frame when the belt provided with the buckle is adjusted about the waist of the wearer.

Instead of attaching the hinged plate 15 to the means, as gudgeons 1e, by which the combined belt attaching loop 12 and engaging cam 13 is connected to the buckle-frame I may attach it independently to the side pieces of the buckle-frame by means of a pintle 19 (Figs. 8 and 9), the ends of which pass through apertures therefor in the side pieces 11, and it will be noted that this form of attachment requires no alteration in the shape or construction of the button engaging plate but merely provides that it may be attached to a belt-buckle of a construction that does not provide the required space between the ends of the member 12-l3 and side pieces of the buckle-frame by reason of short gudgeons.

' From the foregoing description it will be understood that my invention provides for making up a belt-buckle having a hinged plate with a button engaging slot opening out at its upper end to closely confine the button within the buckle, and that the construction of said hinged plate is such that it provides an attachment for the purpose stated that is applicable to various types of belt-buckles, and consequently I do not wish to confine my invention to any particular type of beltbuckle.

The buckle hereinbefore described is used in connection with a belt in the usual man- .er, the hinged plate not interfering with the adjustmentof the belt around the waist of the wearer and in performing this operation it is necessary only to swing said hinged plate away from the buckle-frame sufliciently to permit the engagement of the button C with the slot in the plate and when the buckle assumes its position against the waist-band the plate is closed and retains the button within the buckle for an intimate connection thereby preventing the waist-band from slipping down behind the buckle or the buckle riding on the waist-band thus maintaining a proper set of the trousers and position of the belt with respect to the waistband. In the present instance also the hinged plate being held flush with the inner edges of the side pieces of the buckle frame provides a bearing surface across the back of the buckle, as well as facilitates the operation of swinging the plate outward inasmuch as the outer end thereof is maintained in closed position away from the inner side of the face-plate and also away from the loose end of the belt threaded through the buckle.

I claim 1. A belt-buckle comprising a face-plate and side pieces with belt attaching and engaging means, together with a plate hinged JetWeQll the side pieces and having a slot opening out at one edge thereof, and means carried by said plate for limiting the inward movement thereof.

2. A belt-buckle comprising a faceplate and side pieces with belt attaching and engaging means, together with a plate hinged between the side pieces'and having a slot opening out at one edge thereof, and means carried by said plate to engage the face-plate of the buckle and limit the inward movement of said hinged plate.

8. In combination with a belt-buckleof a plate pivotally connected to the buckle frame to swing away from the same and of approximately the same width as the buckle, said pivotally connected plate having a slot opening out at one edge thereof, and means on said pivotally connected plate engaging the buckle frame to limit its inward movement.

4. A belt-buckle comprising a face-plate and side pieces with belt attaching and engaging means, together with a plate hinged between the side pieces and having a slot opening out at one edge of the plate, and projections on the plate formingv foot pieces engaging the face-plate to limit the inward movement of said hinged plate.

5. A buckle comprising a face-plate and side pieces with belt attaching and engaging means, together with a plate hinged at one end between the side pieces and having a slot opening out at the upper edge of the plate, and projections at the hinged end of said plate engaging the face-plate to limit the inward movement of the plate.

6. An attachment for belt-buckles comprising a plate having means for engaging a button, apertured ears at one end of the plate for attaching said plate to the buckle, and extensions at the edges of the plate forming feet.

7. An attachment for belt-buckles comprising a plate having means for engaging a button, apertured ears at one end of the plate for attaching said plate to the buckle, and projections extended from the ears to form feet for limiting the movement of the plate on the buckle.

THEODORE J. LOWERY. 

